Vegetables could not be grown without tunnel farming in December and January:Experts

Lahore: The vegetables experts have told that in the months of December and January it is impossible to grow summer vegetables without tunnel farming. For this purpose, developed tunnel technology has been introduced to the progressive farmers in Punjab.

The summer vegetables like cucumber, tomato, sweet chilies, green chilies, pumpkin, sponge gourd, bitter gourd, vegetable marrow, red gourd, brinjal, water melon, musk melon are being successfully grown in low, walk-in and high tunnels.

The tunnel grown vegetables are covered by green fiber sheets to protect these vegetables from severe cold and frost during months of December and January. With the intensive care, the farmers get early production of these summer vegetables and earn more income than seasonal sown vegetables.

The experts have recommended the vegetables growers to get proper training of tunnel farming and start nursery cultivation of tomato, sweet chilies, green chilies, and brinjal from the mid of September. Well fertile loamy soils having better drainage are best for the cultivation of these vegetables.

Selection of vegetables verities, disease free seeds and growing of nursery are important steps in the tunnel farming. The selected nursery fields should be away from shade of trees and near to the tube well. Before nursery sowing well decayed farm yard manure and organic fertilizers must be added in the soil. Leveled nursery fields should be well prepared with the use of rota vator and 3-4 plowing with planking.

The prepared field should be divided into small units and vegetables seeds be sown in the rows at 3 inches plant to plant distance. After sowing the seeds must be covered with mixed decayed plant leaves and sandy norm soil particles.

The nursery must be covered with net of cloth and spread rice husk are date palm leaves on the sown nursery lines. After nursery sowing sprinkler irrigation techniques are necessary for the germination of seeds. After seed germination, this covered material should be moved so that nursery plants can use maximum light and air for their better growth.